Following Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s announcement of withdrawal of the interest rate-slashing order, the Opposition on Thursday hit out at her asking whether the U-turn was an “oversight” or an “election-driven hindsight” and even sought her resignation.
The Congress asked the Finance Minister to clarify if the interest rates would not be reduced after the ongoing Assembly elections and demanded a guarantee on that. It also asked whether the ruling BJP was running a “circus” or a Government on the manner in which the order was issued by “oversight” and later withdrawn.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleged that the small saving rates would be reduced soon after the elections in four States and a Union Territory.”There was already a loot on petrol and diesel and soon after the elections end, the small saving rates will be reduced and there will be a loot on the savings of the middle-class. This Government is of jumla (rhetoric) and the loot of common people,” he said in a tweet using the hashtag “oversight”.
“Really Nirmala Sitharaman ‘oversight’ in issuing the order to decrease interest rates on GOI schemes or election driven ‘hindsight’ in withdrawing it?” Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi wrote on Twitter.
Addressing a press conference here, party leader Rajeev Shukla said Sitharaman should clarify whether the order has been withdrawn, postponed or would be re-implemented later.
Congress general secretary and chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said Sitharaman has no right to continue as the Finance Minister. “Madam FM, Are u running a ‘Circus’ or a ‘Government’? You have no moral right to continue as FM,” he wrote on Twitter.
“One can imagine the functioning of economy when such duly approved order affecting crores of people can be issued by an ‘oversight’. Who is the competent authority referred in order,” Surjewala added.
Senior Congress leader and former Finance Minister P Chidambaram said when inflation is at about six per cent and expected to rise, the BJP Government is offering interest rates below six per cent, hitting the savers and the middle class below the belt.
“The BJP Government had decided to launch another assault on the middle class by slashing the interest rates and profiting itself. When caught, the FM is putting forward the lame excuse of ‘inadvertent error’,” he tweeted.
The Trinamool Congress took a dig at the Modi Government with its MPs While Derek O’Brien and Mahua Moitra calling it an April’s Fool joke even as the new entrant in the party and former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha tweeted, “Roll back Modi’.
“What is the biggest April Fool’s joke here? That a now rolled back small savings rate cut was issued by ‘oversight’? Or that Nirmala Sitaraman is Fin Min of this country?” Moitra tweeted. O’Brien said it was egg on face again. “Because MO-SHA too busy throwing petals from trucks and cracking April Fool jokes of false promises at election rallies,” he mocked at the BJP leadership.
Sinha made a tongue-in-cheek remark. “I am very sad today. I thought I alone had the monopoly of roll backs. This govt has outdone even me. Labour laws, small savings interest rates are a couple of examples. Roll Back Modi,” he tweeted.